Antennaria racemosa is characterized by adaxially glabrous basal leaves and open, racemiform to paniculiform arrays of heads (R. J. Bayer 1985b). The young leaves have a slight odor of citronella when crushed. Antennaria racemosa has a pivotal sexual genome of the Catipes group and has contributed to the origin of clones in the A. howellii, A. parlinii, and A. rosea polyploid agamic complexes (Bayer 1985, 1985b, 1990b).